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Runelords 16.0 - Mayoral Meeting
After scanning the area thoroughly and determining that there was no trace of the lamia in the area, the group returned to Foxglove's townhouse, where the tired, worn individuals went their own ways for the night. Early that morning, before Shadliss had awoken, the three Pandemonium soldiers convened in order to discuss what they had found at the clock tower, their next move, and to determine a plan of action regarding Aldern, who they now knew not only had the potential to go feral and assault them at any time, but could also command Luna at will. They argued briefly, concerned that the malady that afflicted Aldern's mind was much more complex than they originally assumed, as his actions on the clock tower compared to those in and around the Misgivings implied a range of emotion and sensibility in his afflicted state that a simple compulsion couldn't explain. Further tangling the problem was Luna: her and Aldern had obviously become rather close lately, with him depending on her support to adjust. The thought of Aldern attacking innocent people was terrible enough, but if he could command Luna to join him, it made the situation exponentially more dangerous. Not only did this mean that Luna was not effectively able to supervise him on her own, as she would be worse than incapable of stopping him, but also that there was an inherent danger to letting her be near him at all. However, removing her as a support for him threatened to trigger the emotional instability that seemed to preclude his episodes. The three, particularly Eamon and Virgil, could not come to a satisfying conclusion: in the end, they agreed to ask the two to concede to greater supervision, on the hopes that they wouldn't be oversensitive to the implications and loss of privacy. As for their continued involvement in the cessation of local murders, they had read the notes left by the lamia whose name was apparently Xanthia and discovered that she was indeed the mastermind behind the string of ritual deaths. However, she had been having correspondence with a "sister" who was apparently stationed in Turtleback Ferry, enacting a plan just as murderous and devious as the one they had foiled here. The three men all readily agreed that they would have to make haste to to deal with whatever problems might be brewing. Tomorrow, Eamon would accompany Luna and Aldern to the meeting with the mayor in order to inform him of the lamia, the golem in the clock tower and the murder plots, including what they had already submitted to the local police regarding Ironbriar and the notes they had just found which listed future targets, including the mayor himself. Meanwhile, Virgil, Khyrralien and Shadliss would deal with selling the valuables they had "recovered" from the lamia and from Ironbriar's secret sawmill office. The next morning, the group went about their business as planned. Virgil showed Shadliss the veritable king's ransom of jewelry and coin, shocking her with the wealth they had just stumbled into. He allowed her to keep whatever she wanted from the chest of baubles, and she selected a variety of pieces with extreme excitement and relish. With Romeo's help, she sorted through the box and estimated its value to be nearly 5000 gold; with that price in mind, she set out with Virgil and Khyrralien towards the dockyards, where they hoped to find some interested buyers who specialized in possibly less than wholesome goods. They found someone indeed, a ship's captain who had no problem taking the jewels and Ironbriar's maps off of their hands. The captain was a good-looking youth, and Virgil's incessant sweet talk and somewhat flirtatious manner managed to net them more money than they had hoped; Shadliss smacked him for his behaviour once they had left, but wasn't too jealous considering that the captain was a man and they had made a solid profit from the deal. They returned to Foxglove's house laden with money. Meanwhile, the other three had gone to the town hall, where the mayor held audiences by appointment with members of the public. As they sat and waited for their turn, each hoping that their disguises were good enough, the door to the mayor's office opened and someone stormed out, apparently the appointment prior to theirs. It was a kobold wearing long, flowing robes quite oversized for them, with blue paint decorating their scaled face. It could be none other than one of the Shivering Ones, one of the kobolds that Ironbriar had informed them was purchasing the mould from the Misgivings. In unison, Eamon and Luna shouted out "Sir!" to get their attention, only to get a withering glare and a correction of "Ma'am!". Apologizing profusely for the faux pas, they introduced themselves, and the kobold woman gave her name as Samantha. She was obviously in a poor mood, spitting mad at the disrespectful treatment she had received from city officials here in Medinipur, and demanded that they state their business quickly. Luna, spurred by the pressure, attempted to get information regarding the mould and its use by claiming to be the supplier. Unfortunately, her efforts didn't manage to net much new information, as Samantha was unwilling to divulge the specifics of the mould's use; instead, she only managed to sign them into a deal where they were required to supply ten pounds of living mould on the first of each month, in exchange for a thousand gold pieces upon delivery. Samantha was pleased: it was heartening to finally deal with reasonable, respectful mammals for a change, though she made some ominous comments about what might occur if they reneged on the deal. They were directed to deliver the mould to a specific warehouse in the shipping district, until the Shivering Ones could close the deal on their embassy; their actual warren was in the mountains many leagues away. With the deal signed in duplicate, one for each party, Samantha took her leave. As Luna apologized profusely to Aldern for putting them in a situation where they were required to return to the Misgivings, they were summoned into the mayor's office. The mayor was a large, stately-dressed man who greeted them happily, and with a sidelong comment about the ridiculousness of his earlier meeting. They introduced themselves, and Eamon launched into a formal breakdown of the events that had transpired since they had come to Medinipur, obviously omitting anything that involved Foxglove. The mayor took this with great interest, and was particularly unsettled by the fact that his name was on the hit list. He judged them to be trustworthy, as these facts corroborated with the reports he had been getting from the police, and he was extremely happy to have these horrid events straightened out before anyone else, particularly himself, died. He commented that the tower should have been demolished ages ago, but its deconstruction would cost more money than any of the counselors cared to agree to; the golem would be handled, and Chief Justice Ironbriar would be investigated, though as he had already apparently fled town, he was likely to just live in exile for his remaining years. The mayor thanked them heartily, and without prompt signed a writ for a reward for their services totaling six thousand gold each for the three people who had brought this matter to a close. The three were frankly startled by this, and thanked him profusely. As he wrote it, he questioned whether they would be interested in another job: a protectorate of Medinipur had been sending reports of trouble. Apparently the nearby fort, tasked with protecting the area, hadn't had any communication with town in some time, and anyone they sent there to check never returned. He had been pressured to send a task force to investigate on the town's behalf for a few weeks now, but as the protectorate was several weeks away, he hadn't had anyone in particular to send on such a remote journey, especially with the local disturbances. Luna quietly questioned whether the protectorate happened to be Turtleback Ferry; the mayor was surprised that she had guessed correctly. They agreed to go on this mission, they explained, since they were already planning on going there based on information they had found regarding their personal mission, regarding the woman they had been chasing since Thistletop Shrine, and the note found in the lamia's desk. The mayor was thrilled that he was getting so many items off of his to-do list, and offered to pay their way to Turtleback Ferry, giving them an additional 3500 gold and a promise of further pay for any problems they might have to solve once they get there, proportional to the magnitude of the tasks. As he thanked them again for their services and moved to end the meeting, Luna piped up that she needed something else. Taking out the medallion that she had been crafting, she explained that she was a crafter of magic items and that this particular piece needed his blessing, as the highest ranking and most important political figure of the city. He was flattered by the implication of his worth, and asked what he needed to do. She told him that the best thing to do would likely be to inaugurate the necklace, not unlike a boat or a building. He puffed up proudly, as apparently one of his favourite jobs as mayor was giving opening speeches and the like, and he gave a formal announcement of the inauguration of this medallion. As he finished, the runes on the amulet flashed, and Luna thanked him sincerely for his help. With that, the three took their leave. Before heading back to the townhouse, Eamon, Luna and Aldern went looking for Ilsa, informing her that they would be leaving for Turtleback Ferry at the beginning of Tevet, as Luna's ill-conceived business plan meant that they had to make a delivery in Medinipur on the first. The news that they were going, and that they had been sponsored by the mayor, excited her, and she offered to set up the arrangements as she was familiar with the trip. Luna spent the rest of the afternoon and evening finishing the final preparations of the amulet, while the others conducted their own pursuits. Deep in the night, both Khyrralien and Eamon came down with violent coughs and weakness: the same illness that Virgil and Khyr had contracted before from their time in the Misgivings. Apparently, Aldern's teeth held disease. Eamon managed to shake off the illness after a day of determined rest; Khyr continued to become progressively worse over the following four days, forcing the others to fetch a cleric to cast Remove Disease on him as they worried that he might not make it. As he thrashed and moaned, the illness having progressed so far as to cause delirium, Shadliss managed to sneak a look at the fey's face, uncovered as it was; she slightly regretted her decisions. As the days passed on and Khyrralien was finally restored to health, Shadliss struck a deal with Aldern: she had no interest in going to Turtleback Ferry with them, as she claimed that the remote town would make Sandpoint look metropolitan in comparison, but she would gladly stay in Medinipur and watch Aldern's house for him for a nominal fee. The idea of having his house looked after appealed to him, and he agreed to the arrangement. Shadliss then requested a sum of money from Virgil to cover her expenses while she was there, and the man acquiesced much to her satisfaction. Settled on what was to be a lovely vacation, Shadliss prepared to have run of the lavish townhouse while the others traveled with Ilsa to the remote Turtleback Falls, where numerous untoward things seemed to be afoot. Category:Rise of the Runelords